Not Alone
by shopgirl152
Summary: Dumbo/Lambert x-over Even when you feel alone, there is someone else in the world who knows how you feel.
1. Chapter 1

"You can't even baa, you can't even bleat. You're ears are too big and so are your feet, Lambert!" The little lamb doubled over in laughter while another chimed in, complementing the tune.

"Your tail's to short and so is your wool; there isn't enough for one bag full!" The little lamb fell onto the other one, both of them bleating with laughter.

Lambert hung his head in shame; he tried so hard to be a good lamb, to romp and frolic and head butt his playmates. But they would have none of it; he was to different. And the problem was, he knew it too. He could never be one of them. With his head still hung low, he plodded away, a single tear escaping from his eyes.

He walked over to his mother, looking at her with sorrowful eyes. He sat down next to her, flicking his long tail restlessly as she gave him a bath. She smiled at him reassuringly, with a look only a mother could give her hurting child. She thought her son was the best thing in the world. But Lambert didn't agree; he got up, rubbing against his mother before heading to a secluded pond.

When he reached the pond a few minutes later, he scrambled on top of a rock, sitting down, peering at his reflection in the water. A tear slowly slid down his cheek, creating tiny ripples, messing up his reflection. He looked at one of his paws, hiding it underneath him in embarrassment. As another tear fell, his ears perked up, catching a faint sound carried by the wind: "Lambert thinks that he can lick a dozen lambs alone!"

Lambert winced as another sound was carried on the breeze: "but he can't! He's no sheep; he's not one of us."

"Yeah!" The other lambs chimed in, before bleating into laughter again. Lambert looked at his reflection again, letting the tears fall freely this time. He couldn't baa, he couldn't bleat. He was a lion, yet…he was nothing but a coward. He hastily wiped the tears away with a big hairy paw. He couldn't stay here anymore; the lamb's teasing hurt to much and his mother? He smiled, then frowned. His mother didn't understand; she never would.

With newfound resolve, he hopped off the rock, landing in the pond with a splash. He shook himself off, then started running for the woods, not daring to look back.

* * *

"Hiya Dumbo! How's it goin?" Timothy walked up to Dumbo, waving cheerfully. Dumbo turned around, glaring at the little mouse; it was Timothy's fault he had these bruises and bumps all over his head. Timothy's big idea to make Dumbo the climax of last night's show had backfired horribly. Dumbo had tripped on his overgrown ears, only to crash into the pyramid of elephants, sending them flailing dangerously around the circus tent.

Because of Timothy, Dumbo's elephant herd had completely shut him out. Not that his ears were any help either; the elephant herd had laughed at him from the beginning. Dumbo raised his trunk, gently rubbing a bruise.

"What's a matter Dumbo?" Dumbo turned back around, ignoring his friend. "Aww, come on Dumbo; they're just a bunch of overblown pachyderms." He scrambled up on top of Dumbo's head. "You don't need them; besides, I got a new job for you."

Dumbo gently lifted Timothy off the top of head, placing him on the ground so he could see him; he waited expectantly.

"Okay, here it is: you're a baby. A big clown baby who has to be saved! You get rescued! By the clown fire brigade!" Timothy put his hands out, as if to say ta-da! "So, whaddya think? Pretty neat huh?"

Without thinking, Dumbo lifted Timothy off his feet, tossing him into a nearby pile of hay. He had had enough of Timothy's schemes, enough of his big ideas. Humiliation by a clown fire brigade was the last thing he needed.

Timothy popped his head out of the hay in surprise. He stared at Dumbo in confusion. "Gee, what'd I do?"

Dumbo grabbed his hat off a nearby hook, stalking out of the tent, heading toward the woods. He didn't need Timothy; he didn't need anybody.

"Dumbo! Wait! Dumbo! Come back!" Timothy raced toward the tent flap…but Dumbo was already gone.


	2. Chapter 2

Lambert raced through the woods, his heart pounding. He had no idea the woods would be so scary. He leapt over a stream, heading toward a broken tree in his path. He made a run for it, leaping high in the air…only to land on top of it, half his body on one side, half on the other. He kicked and scrambled until he hauled himself off, then kept running, the lambs teasing echoing in his ears:

_Lambert thinks that he can lick a dozen lambs alone_.  
_But he can't!  
__He's no sheep; he's not one of us_.  
_Yeah!_

His heart pounded harder; with the tears blurring his vision, he ran and ran and ran, not caring what he saw. Suddenly, without warning, he tripped over a tree root. The action sent him rolling head over heels through the woods, bouncing off branches and flying over stumps.

He shut his eyes to stop the pain, the tears. He rolled and rolled and rolled, until suddenly—smack! He collided with an unknown object. Before he could blink, he found himself flat on his back, breathing hard. He squeezed his eyes shut as another tear trickled down his face. He jumped suddenly as something touched him; something heavy, yet…gentle at the same time. He slowly opened his eyes, finding himself staring up into the face of a large, grey creature.

The creature was grey all over, with a white hat on his head, a pink frilly circus collar around his neck. He stared at Lambert with concern, then twisted his trunk around the lion cub.

Lambert tentatively wrapped his paw around the creature's trunk, allowing himself to be pulled into a sitting position. When he sat up, he noticed tears collecting in the corner of the grey creature's eyes. Without thinking, he gently pawed the wrinkled skin, staring at the tears while the grey creature gently touched around his face, seeming to wipe his own tears away.

Lambert stared as the grey creature slowly took his trunk away, smiling gently. Feeling slightly intimidated, Lambert stood up, tucking his tail and paws underneath him. He began to bleat, only to have the bleat end up in a series of hiccups. He clamped a hand over his mouth, embarrassed, as the grey creature chuckled lightly. Lambert silently resented this. He watched the grey creature chuckle and then went to walk away, only to gasp in surprise when the grey creature sneezed, revealing two, huge, grey ears that were bigger than him.

Lambert fell over laughing, clamping a paw over his mouth immediately at the hurt look on the grey creature's face.

Dumbo sniffed back a tear, turning to walk away, only to find himself stopped. He slowly turned around, his eyes connecting with the lion cub's. The cub smiled warmly at him. Dumbo returned the smile. As the two stared at each other, they realized something: for once, they were not alone in the world.


	3. Chapter 3

"Oh boy; where'd he go? I gotta find him! The little guy could be lost or scared or hurt." Timothy shook his head, dislodging the unpleasant thought. "There's only one thing to do; mount a search party!" With that resolved, he headed over toward the ring of adult elephants. He strode into the middle of the gathering, causing them to scatter and scream, practically climbing on each other to get as far away from Timothy as possible.

He chuckled in spite of himself. "Still afraid of a mouse huh?" He turned to walk away, then ran back into the center. "Oogie Boogie!" The elephants shrieked again. Timothy laughed, then got serious. "Hey, you big overblown pachyderms; I don't like you anymore than you like me, so let's cut to the chase. I'm looking for Dumbo; has anybody seen him?"

A big, dark brown, proud looking elephant peeked out from behind a bale of hay. "Dumbo? That rapscallion? That little nuisance who ruined us all? No, we haven't seen him. And even if we had, he is of no use to us; as of tonight, he is no longer an elephant."

"How can you be so cruel? He's one of your own, a fellow elephant. And you disown him? And for what? All because he has big ears. It's not his fault; he's just a little guy. He's missing and you don't even care; he ran away."

The brown elephant huffed. "Well, good riddance. He can find his own way home; and if he never comes back, the circus will be better for it."

"You cruel, selfish animals. I'll find him myself. At least he has _somebody_ who cares." With that, Timothy walked off in a huff, not even bothering to scare the elephants again; they weren't worth it. He walked out of the tent, headed in the direction Dumbo had gone. The woods. He gulped. "Well, I guess this is it; good-bye cruel world." He swallowed, then straightened up. "I don't care what it takes; I'm going to find Dumbo if it's the last thing I do!"

* * *

Over on the other side of the woods, somebody else was having their own set of problems. Lambert's mother had looked high and low for her wayward cub. She had baad and bleated at every sheep and lamb in the flock, but it was no use; Lambert was no where to be found. The little lambs had bleated that they had no idea where he could have gone and the sheep mothers hadn't seen him all afternoon.

She walked over to the flock, broken hearted. As she laid her head on her hooves, she glanced around at the sleeping flock. She lifted her head at the sound of crickets chirping, then gulped as she thought about her cub being lost in the thick woods. Standing up on shaky legs, she left the flock, looking over her shoulder one last time before disappearing into the woods.


	4. Chapter 4

Lambert and Dumbo sat next to each other in the woods; neither one sure what to do. Lambert absently unsheathed his claws, drawing in the dirt. He shook the dirt off his claws, looking at Dumbo. He brightened, getting an idea. He traced letters in the dirt, spelling something: L-A-M-B-E-R-T. He pointed to the name, then pointed to himself.

Dumbo grinned, nodding at his newfound friend. He went to unsheathe his own claws, only to smile in embarrassment; he was an elephant. He didn't have any claws. He looked at Lambert sadly.

Lambert looked around, then stood up, heading for a nearby tree. He started a little as something gently grabbed his tail, then smiled when he looked back, realizing the grey creature had taken hold of it and was walking behind him. He continued walking toward the tree, then stopped, noticing a low hanging branch. With one swipe of his claw, he cut the branch off the tree. He turned around carefully, waiting for the grey creature to let go of his tail. When he did, Lambert handed him the branch, smiling triumphantly.

The grey creature looked at the branch curiously, holding it at trunk's length. Lambert tapped him gently on the shoulder, motioning to the ground. He unsheathed his claw again, tracing a pattern in the dirt. He pointed to the branch, pointed to his claw, then pointed to what he had drawn on the ground.

The grey creature's eyes brightened. Holding the stick in his trunk, he spelled something in the dirt: D-U-M-B-O. He grinned, pleased with himself.

Lambert grinned, happy to have taught his new friend something. He looked around, then turned, waiting as Dumbo gently grabbed his tail. With Dumbo in tow, he headed off to explore more of the woods.

* * *

"Okay, where could he have gone? Dumbo…where are you? Duuummboo…" Timothy leapt from branch to branch, surveying the woods below him. He stopped, hearing a rustling on the ground. "Dumbo?" He scampered down the branches, looking around; his eyes landing on a fluffy, white looking creature whose knees shook in fright. "A sheep?" Timothy scratched his head. "What the heck is a sheep doing in the woods?" He scampered down the branches to the ground, cautiously walking up to the sheep. "Uh, excuse me…"

The sheep jumped a foot into the air, scampering behind a tree. "Ooo…guess I overdid it." Timothy peeked around the tree. "Hi there. Um…my name's Timothy. Sorry I scared you. I'm looking for a friend of mine; have you seen him? Big, grey, huge floppy ears?" The sheep sadly shook her head, her knees wobbling underneath her. "Well, okay; guess I'll be going then." He turned to walk away, then turned around. "Say…are you lost?" The sheep just stared at him. Timothy scratched his head in confusion. "Are you looking for something?" That got a response; the sheep nodded vigorously. Timothy smiled. "Well…what are you looking for? Maybe I can help you find it."

"Laaammmbert."

Timothy scratched his head. "What's a Lambert?" He looked at the sheep. "Well, no matter; we'll find it. Hold still please." The sheep watched nervously as Timothy climbed on top of her. He settled onto her head. "Hey, it's nice and soft up here; very cozy." He looked around. "Let's go. Oh…mind if I call you Miss. Sheep?" The sheep shook her head violently. "No? How about Mrs. Sheep?" Timothy tried, then hung on tight as the sheep nodded, almost dislodging him. "Whoa. Calm down; I almost fell off. Well…are you okay if we look together? There's safety in numbers." The sheep nodded, then trotted off, wondering about this pesky, yet friendly intruder who was now sitting on top of her head.


	5. Chapter 5

Lambert plodded around, looking up at the trees that were all around him. They looked inviting; nice and high up. He could probably see his flock from one of them. He stopped in front of a large oak tree and, forgetting Dumbo was with him, leapt up… falling to the ground with a loud crash.

Dumbo jerked, instantly letting go of Lambert's tail as the cub stared at him. He grinned sheepishly, offering his trunk and lifting Lambert to his feet again.

Lambert turned around, facing the tree, then looked behind him. Dumbo waved his trunk at him; nodding, Lambert crouched down, sticking his tongue out and closing one eye in concentration. He sized up the tree, backed himself up and with a running start, pedaled his legs as fast as he could. He leapt at the tree, sinking his claws into the trunk.

* * *

Dumbo watched as his new friend clung desperately to the tree, scrabbling his paws against the bark, unable to move. He jumped up, running to the tree as Lambert starting sliding down. In one swift movement, he had his trunk out, catching Lambert before he slid all the way to the bottom.

Lambert panted, clinging tightly to the tree as Dumbo pushed below him, gently urging him upwards. He looked up at the high tree, gulping as he put one paw out, catching the tree bark. He slowly dislodged his other claw, putting it next to the other one while Dumbo continued to push him from below.

Between the two of them, Lambert finally made it to a low hanging tree branch. He climbed onto it, his legs shaking from the strain. He crawled along the branch, gently lying down, watching below him as Dumbo collapsed against the tree, utterly exhausted. Lambert panted, resting his head on his paws, slowly drifting off to sleep.

* * *

"Duuummmbboo. Duuummmboo."

"Laambert! Laambert!"

Timothy scanned the woods, looking all around; no sign of Dumbo anywhere. They had been looking for what felt like hours.

Mrs. Sheep turned her head from side to side, looking at the scary woods. She walked cautiously, jumping when she heard a loud crack. "Laambert!" In one swift movement, she scampered behind a tree, peeking out nervously.

Timothy scratched his head in confusion. "What's got you scared now?" He climbed off her, cautiously checking the ground, chuckling when he found a broken tree branch. He held it up. "Is this what you're afraid of? It's just a tree branch; nothing to worry about." He climbed back up her, sitting down on top of her head. "You're a nervous Nellie, aren't ya?" Mrs. Sheep bleated in annoyance. "Sorry, sorry. Uh-oh." He held out a paw, feeling a rain drop bounce off it. He looked up at the sky. "Looks like we're in for some weather; better find a place to stay."

Mrs. Sheep perked her ears up, listening to Timothy's advice, slowly making her way to a nearby tree that was hollowed out on the bottom. She walked in, circling three times before laying down. She put her head on her hooves, closing her eyes.

Timothy jumped off her, landing on the ground. He looked around. "Well, not much of a place, but at least it's cozy." Mrs. Sheep opened an eye, looking at him. "Not much to do now; better wait 'til morning." He climbed back on top of her, making himself a nest in her soft wool. "Good-night then." Mrs. Sheep bleated a good night, settling down.

Timothy popped his head up. "Say, does your wool shrink in the rain?" He was thrown off, landing smartly on the ground for his troubles. Mrs. Sheep glared at him. "Okay, okay! Just asking!"


	6. Chapter 6

CRASH! BOOM! Lambert jumped into the air, flailing around for a branch as he fell to the ground, landing on top of Dumbo, who squeaked in fright as a lightening bolt shot across the sky.

The pair shot up as another thunderclap shook the earth, sending Dumbo running in a panic, Lambert clinging to the top of his head, holding on for dear life.

Dumbo scrambled, dodging lightening bolts as they shot into the ground. He made a fast u-turn, running around in a circle before heading to a nearby tree, only to skid to a halt as a bolt of lightening split the tree in two. He shook with fright, giving a long, loud trumpet, sending the sound shooting into the sky.

* * *

"It's okay Mrs. Sheep; it's just a storm, it'll pass soon. Shhh…" Timothy spoke in soothing tones, trying to calm a shaking Mrs. Sheep. "It's okay it'll—" His ears perked up, catching a faint sound that seemed to be coming from the middle of the woods. He shot up. "Dumbo! I'd know that squeaky trumpet anywhere! Come on Mrs. Sheep; Dumbo's out there! We have to find him! He could be in trouble!" He attempted to push Mrs. Sheep, but she was to frightened by the storm to move. "Fine! If you won't go, then I will!" He ran out of the tree, dodging lightening bolts as he ran. "I'm coming Dumbo!"

* * *

Dumbo ran around in circles, trumpeting loudly, Lambert still clinging to his head. He ran to another tree, skidding to a halt as his big ears caught something over the noise of the storm.

"Dumbo! Dumbo! DUMBO!" Timothy ran into the clearing, just in time to see Dumbo make another u-turn. "Dumbo! Over here!"

Dumbo ran full speed toward Timothy…only to be stopped by a huge tree that crashed in front of him. He skidded to a halt, sending Lambert flying off his head, landing a few feet away.

Lambert sat up groggily, shaking himself as the earth rumbled with the sound of another thunderclap.

"Look out!" Timothy watched in horror as a nearby tree fell on the little lion cub, pinning him to the ground. "Dumbo! We gotta save him! Come on!" Dumbo nodded, hastily picking Timothy up as they ran for the fallen tree.


	7. Chapter 7

Lambert struggled against the tree that had him pinned to the ground. He kicked out his back legs, scrambling with his front paws, trying to get a hold of the dirt. It was no use; he was stuck. He struggled again, looking up at the sound of Dumbo trumpeting.

Dumbo ran toward him, a brown mouse on the top of his head. He stopped in front of the tree as the mouse climbed down, holding onto a tree branch to keep himself from blowing away. "Okay Dumbo! Lift!" Dumbo wrapped his trunk under the tree, trying to pull the tree off Lambert. He pulled and pulled and pulled until little beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

"Come on Dumbo! Lift!" Dumbo took a deep breath, bracing himself against another fallen tree as another lightening bolt lit the sky. He pulled up as hard as he could; this time, he lifted the tree a few inches; but not enough to let Lambert escape. "Oh boy! Now what are we gonna do?!" Timothy let go of the branch as the wind dyed down. He paced back and forth, covering his ears as another thunderclap shook the sky.

Dumbo lost his footing, stumbling a little before catching the tree branch before he crushed Lambert for good.

"Hold on Dumbo!" Dumbo braced his legs, his face red. "If only we had someway to pull him out of there!" He turned toward Dumbo, whose face was now turning blue. "Hang on Dumbo! I'll think of—"

"Laambert!" Timothy's head shot up; running at full speed across the woods was Mrs. Sheep. "Laambert! Laambert! Laambert!" She ran over to the fallen tree, her legs shaking so bad she could barely stand. She licked Lambert's head soothingly. "Laambert."

"So that's a Lambert!" Timothy snapped his fingers. "That's it! I got it!" He turned to Mrs. Sheep frantically. "Mrs. Sheep, can you pull Lambert out from under that tree?" He looked at Dumbo, whose face was now a dangerous shade of purple. "Okay big guy, just one more time! On the count of three! One…two…three!" With one final lift, Dumbo lifted the tree one more inch.

Mrs. Sheep scrambled underneath the tree, grabbing Lambert by the scruff of the neck and pulling him out just as Dumbo's legs gave out, causing him to fall backwards with a thud.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: **Slight AU here

* * *

"Dumbo! Dumbo!" Timothy scurried over to Dumbo, leaping onto his stomach. "Dumbo, speak to me! Come on big guy! Speak to me! Please!" He lay down on Dumbo's stomach, crying. "Dumbo, please. Wake up."

Lambert wriggled out of his mother's protective hold, scrambling over to where Dumbo and Timothy lay. He walked over to Dumbo's head, cautiously touching his face with a paw. A tear slid down his cheek, landing on top of Dumbo's trunk. He gently padded the grey face again. "Dumbo."

Timothy sniffled through his tears, looking at Lambert in amazement. "What did you say?"

"Dumbo." The little cub sat down sadly, leaning his head against Dumbo's side. A tear trickled down his face. "Dumbo." He hung his head, sniffling sadly as the storm died down, the rain turning to a drizzle. He wiped his eyes with a furry paw, then started as he felt something lightly wrap around his middle. He looked down…noticing a grey trunk encircling his stomach. He turned around, smiling broadly as his friend smiled shyly at him. "Dumbo!"

"Yes, Dumbo. He…" Timothy trailed off, realizing what was happening. "Dumbo!" He leaped up Dumbo's trunk, hugging him. "Boy am I glad you're alright!"


	9. Chapter 9

Timothy shuffled his feet, kicking at a mound of dirt. The sun was out now and the four weary animals were resting next to the two fallen trees. Timothy looked up at Dumbo, his eyes full of sorrow. "Gee Dumbo; I'm…I'm sorry about everything that's happened; I didn't mean for you to crash into the pyramid that night; I only want good things for you. But…it was all my fault. I never should have convinced the ringmaster to put you in that position." He attempted a weak smile. "Forgive me?" Dumbo smiled gently, lifting Timothy up with his trunk, putting him in his hat. Timothy smiled. "Back to the circus then?"

Dumbo nodded, turning to walk away when he remembered something. He turned back around, watching as Lambert affectionately rubbed against his mother's side. He walked over to the lion cub, gently wrapping his trunk around the cub's belly.

Lambert turned, wrapping both paws around the grey trunk, gently patting Dumbo's face once more. The two friends stayed that way for awhile, until both gently let go. Dumbo wiped a tear from his eye, turning around to head back to the circus.

"Aw, don't worry Dumbo; I'm sure Lambert will think of you often." Timothy idly hung his arm over the side of Dumbo's hat, then straightened up, remembering something. "Oh, uh…Dumbo? Look, I know you don't want to do the clown fire brigade, but…I'm afraid you're kind of stuck. The clowns wanted you to sign a six week contract. I'm really sorry; I hope that's okay." Dumbo signed resignedly; maybe one day, his life would get better. But for now…he took Timothy off the top of his head, looking at him, nodding slowly; there was no going back now; might as well face it. He was about to be a big clown baby.

* * *

Lambert sat on his haunches, a tear trickling down his cheek as he watched Dumbo get smaller and smaller on the horizon, until he finally disappeared beyond a hill. He started as his mother gently licked his head, causing curls to form in his mane. She gently nudged him to stand up, trotting slowly back to the flock.

He stood there, staring at the horizon, imagining that somewhere, way off in the distance, a small, grey elephant was staring back at him. And somewhere, over that same hill, a grey elephant _was_ staring back at him.

With one final good-bye and one final wave, the two parted ways, off to join their separate worlds.

* * *

They never saw each other again after that fateful meeting, but when times got rough, when the lamb's teasing became to great to bear; when the big ears just seemed to be to much, they snuck away, one sitting outside the circus tent, the other sitting up while the flock slept, watching that same hill, that same horizon. For they knew, that even when things got bad, there was someone else in the world who understood how they felt. And for one, fleeting moment, the world was a little less lonely.


End file.
